Sleeping in such a tiny bed with a rather large human being beside me wasn't the best night's sleep I've had. In the morning we left enough money to pay for the bed that was more than likely broken before Ollie pounced on it, then took off and continued our treck up heading north. 

For the first time, Ollie asked if I wanted to drive and of course, I accepted. I knew he was tired and I didn't mind driving the single-lane country roads, I didn't struggle with driving on the left side when there was only one lane compared to the multi-lanes of the M6.

I fully enjoyed the country drive, weaving around the bends and taking in the beautiful sights. At one point once we crossed the Scotland border, I was forced to stop because a herd of cattle was lying in the roadway. 

Ollie remained asleep while I sat there watching the cows of many colors grazing on the grass and weeds on the sides of the road. Some of the cows even had babies, so I grabbed my phone from the center console and snapped some pictures of the cows lying in the road and the steep green mountain-scapes in the background. 

Putting the car into park I snap a picture of Ollie sleeping in the passenger's seat and giggle to myself. My phone remains on airplane mode, leaving me ignorantly in a state of bliss. 

Until another car arrives sometime later and begins honking their horn at the cows do the large creatures slowly get up and start to move. They pass me coming from the direction I'm going in an old antique car and give me a wave. 

This is going to be perfect, I think to myself as I creep through the herd of cattle and finally break through the other side and continue north.

For lunch, we reach Inverness and decide to stop and get food. Enjoying our seafood on a picnic table overlooking the coastline we eat and talk, sitting closely and speaking quietly. 

"Have you decided where we're going yet?" Ollie asks me finishing his double order of fries.

"While you were napping I decided we should go all the way to the tip."

"Go big or go home as they say." He says giving me his handsome smile, then begins to dive into the fried fish I haven't finished.

I slide the basket of my food over to him so he can finish it off and snuggle against his arm, "We can aim for Thurso, and if we find a place we like before it we can stop there?"

"Whatever you fancy, Trouble." He says with a full mouth, then sucks the crumbs from his fingers.

"If you're still hungry we can get something else," I say giggling knowing this boy's stomach is a bottomless pit.

"Nah, I'm good. We all set here? Or did you want to look around?"

"I'm good but I want a picture with you," I say removing my phone from my pocket then opening the camera app.

 I hold the phone up with our images facing us as a middle-aged woman walks by and asks in a Scottish accent, "You lot want your picture taken?"

Unsure if Ollie would be okay with that I don't immediately respond, but Ollie speaks quickly, "Yes, please." He stands from the picnic table and hands the lady my phone, then pulls me up.

I stand in front of him and he wraps his strong arms around me, then rests his chin on my head and the woman snaps a couple pictures. We thank her and she leaves us to review the photos.

"I love them." I say, finding myself laughing again at the cute pictures then stuff my phone into my pocket.

"Me too. You sure you don't want to have a look around?"

"No, let's go. I'll know the place once I see it." 

"What about this one?" Ollie asks from the driver's side excited as a small village begins to appear in the distance.

"Hmmm, it looks big."

"Nothing wrong with big." He smarts off beside me so I give him a playful glare and lean up from the seat. We've driven through Thurso an hour ago, and I decided to pass it up because it wasn't exactly what I'm looking for.

"We've been driving forever, Murry. I want to get out and stretch my legs." He complains, but I hold firm.

I want to see the high peaks of the Scottish countryside with lush valleys filled with livestock and wildflowers. The more natural the better.

"What if we drive for another thirty minutes? Please?"

Ollie huffs and I do my best to give him my puppy eyes to which he's unable to hold back a smile. "Fine. Thirty minutes. That's all you get."

"Yay! Okay!" I cheer and sit back in my seat as we drive through the small town and continue to head west.

Thirty minutes turned into four more hours. 

Then, we finally made it.

Although the sun had set within the valley, it was just as I pictured. And with even better luck, we followed handmade painted signs for Carrie-Anne's Bed and Breakfast.

The house was large and there weren't any other vehicles parked outside, but the front garden was lush nearly covering the entire front of the house with peonies, daisies, and dahlias. I'm sure under the sun the colors of the different flowers were stunning.

A sign, with handpainted flowers bordering the lettering, hangs from the roof of the covered wrap-around porch and reads Welcome. Ollie grabs our suitcases from the trunk of his car while I smile at the old french-style house and notice the downstairs lights are on. Ollie joins me then we walk up the steps to the porch and notice the clutter on either side covering the wood boards of the porch with furniture, and little trinkets. Ollie cocks an eyebrow at me and I shrug, "Maybe she's cleaning?"

I knock, then wait.

Ollie and I look at each other and he lets out an annoyed sigh, "We're bloody sleeping in the car if this woman doesn't answer."

"Relax." I tell him then knock again.

"C'come in!" A high-pitched American voice calls from inside the door. 

"Thank fuck!" Ollie whisper-yells behind me and I chuckle, twisting the old antique-styled doorknob then step inside. My eyes widen at the 'decorations' inside. 

"I'll be right with you, dearie." The old woman's voice calls from somewhere inside this house that looks like we've stepped into a time capsule of the twenties. A combination of old Gatbsy styled furniture and french antique covers almost every space of the house. The decorations clash, and when Ollie curses beneath his breath I notice he swats at hanging herbs and dried flowers just above his head.

"We are not staying here, Muriel." Ollie tells me in a hushed but frantic tone.

"It's this or your car." I tell him, refraining from calling him a spoiled brat. It won't hurt for him to stay in places such as these, it'll build character...or something. "Get over it." I say biting my lip to stifle a smile.

The woman speaks again from a separate room, "Oh, Dear. Could you go help the couple for a moment, I need to find my teeth."

Ollie's jaw drops as well as mine so I cover my mouth and giggle quietly. We both wait for the womans significant other to appear, but he never comes.

Instead, a small little woman shuffles in from a room wearing a floral robe with padded shoulders and worn slippers with bunny ears. "Good evening you two, are you looking for a room to stay?" She waddles past us and leads us to a glass counter I hadn't noticed set beside the large bannister of the staircase.

"Yes, please." I say pinching the fabric of Ollie's shirt and pull him behind me as I join her at the counter.

"My name is Carrie-Ann Leonard, Dear and I own this beautiful place. Let me check to be sure we have a free room."

"I didn't notice any cars parked outside-." Ollie states but Carrie-Anne begins to hum loudly, as she hauls a large album book from behind the counter and drops it loudly. She continues humming while she flips through the pages and my smile begins to drop as she traces her finger down a list of invisible guest names, then continues to flip through the pages.

Ollie whistles, leaning forward over the guest book, "Bollocks, you've got quite the guestlist."

I elbow his stomach and he chuckles rubbing the spot I hit then rests his hands on my shoulders.

"Hmmm, goodness gracious, I'm very full at the moment. There must be a ballet going on that I don't know about. Not a problem, we can put you in the penthouse suite."

"Ooooh," Ollie coos, "Hear that babe, the penthouse suite."

I nudge him again with my elbow and plaster a large smile on my face as Carrie-Anne looks up from the book, "May I have your names?"

I open my mouth to speak but Ollie quickly interjects, "Mr. And Mrs. Harry Potter."

"Mr. And Mrs. Potter," she scribbles our names into the book, but her hand is empty of a pen or pencil, "This pleases me and Dear so much that you're married. You won't believe the sorts of young people who come in here just to fornicate in our rooms, hootin' and howlerin' until the late hours of the night."

Oh my, this lady has lost her marbles.

"Of course," Ollie eggs her on, "I had to be sure Ginny here made an honest man out of me."

I glare up at him over my shoulder and give him a scold, "Oliver."

He shrugs with a cheesy mischevious smile and then looks intently at Carrie-Anne.

"Dear, could you help these two with their luggage up to the pent house."

"Oh, no, no, ma'am, I've got these handled." Ollie grabs the bags near his feet.

"Oh thank you, Mr. Potter. Dear is an old fat bastard and it's like pulling teeth to make him do anything."

"My pleasure, Mrs. Leonard." Ollie continues to grin.

"How many nights will we have you?"

"One, for now." Ollie states.

"Wonderful, this way, please." Carrie-Anne shuffles slowly back around the counter and leads us to the stairs where we follow her up. "Breakfast is at 8 AM sharp, if you're late you're out of luck. Lunch is at 11, if you're late you're out of luck. And supper is at 5 if you're-"

"You don't reckon we could push it to half passed five? My stomach is so sensitive." Ollie teases the woman and I want to throttle him, but can't help but find it a little funny.

"Typical Englishman, thinks the world revolves him and his stomach." Carrie-Anne remarks and I chuckle at Ollie's expense.

"What part of America are you from?" I ask as we reach the third floor.

"America? Oh Deary, I'm not American. Might as well call me a knuckle-dragging-Neanderthal."

Ollie takes his chance to chuckle at me now, just as we reach the Penthouse suite, aka, the attic.

I love eccentric weird characters. They are so much fun!

We've got some smut coming next!